"0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem"

"Possession of peace" is a widely accepted meaning of the name "Jerusalem". Ironically, the city has through much of its history known very little peace. She is said to have been conquered at least thirty-seven times, and was virtually destroyed by the Babylonians in BC 587 and again by the Romans in AD 70. Yet today Jerusalem has a population of more than 400,000.

The city also attracts about a million visitors per annum from many parts of the world, for it is sacred to three major religions - Muslim, Jewish and Christian. To the Muslims only Mecca and Medina are more sacred than Jerusalem, called by them Al Quds, the Holy City. On the Temple Mount stand both the famous Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque. The Temple Mount is of course the site of the ancient Solomonic and Herodian Temples, but it is now occupied by these buildings of an alien faith.

Jews will not worship on the Temple Mount because they might unknowingly profane the site of the ancient holy of holies. The present focal point of their religious longings is the Western Wall, often referred to as the Wailing Wall. From all over the world Jews flock to this wall to pray. Tradition has it that prayers said at the wall are acceptable because of its proximity to the ancient Temple sanctuary. Many devotees leave written prayers between the stones

To the Christian world Jerusalem has of course a unique appeal. Many of the major denominations are represented there, some claiming guardianship of supposedly sacred sites. Bible loving believers are doubtless more favourably impressed by aspects of Jerusalem with unspoiled scriptural associations.

As for the resident populace, Jews living in Jerusalem have come from seventy different countries, and tend to group in localities according to their background. Then there are the well defined Arab quarters of the city.

Tensions inevitably arise between different Jewish groups, and of course

between Jews and Arabs. The deepest threat to peace is Israel's occupation of the "Old City", the eastern section which was controlled by Jordan from 1948 to 1967. The Six Day War gave Israel possession of the Old City, and for fifteen years it has been administered with a view to integrating it completely with the rest of Jerusalem. Jewish housing projects have been developed in what had been the "Arab East", and today 70,000 Jews live there, as well as 115,000 Arabs.

In 1980 the Knesset (Jewish Parliament) voted that a reunited Jerusalem was "the eternal capital of our country, our people, our faith, our civilization". This provocative move immediately aroused an adverse vote in the United Nations. Arab claims to East Jerusalem continue to be strongly pressed, for they also passionately cling to what they regard as their long-standing religious and political rights there. So conflict between Jew and Arab over Jerusalem remains one of the most difficult problems in the complex Middle East situation. International opinion hardens against the harsher aspects of Israel's policy, and the Palestinian cause gains more sympathetic consideration. "0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem," cried the Saviour, "which killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children tog' ether, even as a hen gathereth her own brood under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me, until ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord."

Multitudes did say this as He rode into Jerusalem on the lowly colt. But as he drew near to the city He wept over it saying:

If thou hadst known in this day, even thou, the things which belong to peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes ... because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

How clearly the Lord could foresee the tragic consequences of Israel's unbelief!

Yet all things are working according to the counsel of God's will, and His precious promise will be fulfilled that "for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness go forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burneth ... Thou shalt also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God" (Isaiah 62:1,3).

unknown | Aug 1982
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